Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Incapable of being corrected or reformed.
- adjective Firmly rooted; ineradicable.
- adjective Difficult or impossible to control or manage.
- noun One that cannot be corrected or reformed.
from The Century Dictionary.
- Incapable of being corrected or amended.
- Bad beyond correction or reform; irreclaimable: as, an incorrigible sinner or drunkard.
- Synonyms Incurable, hopeless, irrecoverable, irreclaimable; graceless, shameless, hardened.
- noun One who is incapable of amendment or reform.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun One who is incorrigible; a person whose persistent bad behavior cannot be changed; especially, a hardened criminal.
- adjective Not corrigible; incapable of being corrected or amended; bad beyond correction; irreclaimable.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective
defective and impossible to materiallycorrect or setaright . - adjective incurably
depraved ; not reformable. - adjective
impervious to correction by punishment or pain. - adjective
unmanageable . - adjective
determined ,unalterable , hence impossible to improve upon. - adjective archaic
incurable . - noun An incorrigibly bad individual
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adjective impervious to correction by punishment
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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Anna Penrhys knew him, and treacherously revealed some of the enemy's secrets, notably concerning what he termed our incorrigible turn for bribery.
The Adventures of Harry Richmond — Complete George Meredith 1868
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Anna Penrhys knew him, and treacherously revealed some of the enemy's secrets, notably concerning what he termed our incorrigible turn for bribery.
The Adventures of Harry Richmond — Volume 6 George Meredith 1868
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Anna Penrhys knew him, and treacherously revealed some of the enemy's secrets, notably concerning what he termed our incorrigible turn for bribery.
Complete Project Gutenberg Works of George Meredith George Meredith 1868
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He has often lamented, with tears, what he called my incorrigible depravity, and encouraged himself to perseverance by the notion of the ruin that would inevitably overtake me if I were allowed to persist in my present career.
Memoirs of Carwin, the Biloquist Charles Brockden Brown 1790
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An incorrigible is a terrible human being — at least such is the connotation of "incorrigible" in prison psychology.
Chapter 2 2010
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An incorrigible is a terrible human beingat least such is the connotation of "incorrigible" in prison psychology.
Chapter 2 1915
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They were starting to lean on us, and for punishment had put us in "incorrigible row."
Storz, Ronald E. 1973
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The word "incorrigible" -- a word lately pronounced by Dr. Monygham -- floated into her still and sad immobility.
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The word "incorrigible" -- a word lately pronounced by Dr. Monygham -- floated into her still and sad immobility.
Nostromo, a Tale of the Seaboard Joseph Conrad 1890
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Obviously, she knew Sinatra was incorrigible, which is why she didnt want him around the White House, but she really did not know he had been'Jack's pimp all those years ago.
Sinatra The Man Behind the Myth Taraborrelli, J. R. 1997
milosrdenstvi commented on the word incorrigible
Used neatly in the construct 'hopeless and incorrigible'.
August 15, 2008
miasmum commented on the word incorrigible
also used neatly in 'Mary Poppins'..
December 7, 2008
dailyword commented on the word incorrigible
One of the boys in "The Sound Of Music." was this.
August 5, 2012
mohitanand commented on the word incorrigible
adjective: impervious to correction by punishment
Tom Sawyer seems like an incorrigible youth until Huck Finn enters the novel; even Sawyer can't match his fierce individual spirit.
October 19, 2016